urn:taro:utexas.cah.01342A Guide to the Gilbert “Gib” Morgan Papers, 1887-1909,
1944Original EAD encoding by Lauren Algee according to TARO 2 EAD
2002 Editing Instructions.
November 2009Finding aid written in English.
Descriptive Summary
Morgan, GibGilbert “Gib” Morgan
Papers1887-1909,
1944Materials are written in
English.68-1791 in. Dolph Briscoe Center for American
History,The University of Texas at
AustinGilbert “Gib” Morgan was
an oil well driller who attained mythical status in American folklore.
Biographical Note

Gilbert “Gib” Morgan was an oil well
driller who attained mythical status in American folklore. Stories about Morgan
include how he built a vast hotel marvelously adapted to the southwestern
climate, how he brought in a difficult well using a needle and thread for a
cable and drill stem and how he had to shoot a bouncing tool dresser to keep
him from starving to death.

The real Gib Morgan was born in 1842 and grew up in the frontier of
Western Pennsylvania. He fought in the Union Army and with the end of the Civil
War returned home to an oil boom in Pennsylvania. He married and had three
children. After the death of his wife, Morgan became a roving driller,
spreading tall tales about himself across the northern oil industry for two
decades before retiring in the 1890s. Morgan died February 19,
1909.

The papers consist of photostats of documents and photographs. The
documents relate to Morgan’s invalid Pension for his service in the Union Army
from 1861 to 1864. The photographs include a portrait of Morgan and pictures of
old oil well drilling equipment.

Gilbert “Gib” Morgan Papers, 1887-1909,
1944, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at
Austin.

Processing Information

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s "History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light" project, 2009-2011.